Seat Belts

One of the hottest issues in pupil transportation remains whether or not some form of seat belt, or as they’ve come to be known, occupant securements systems, should or should not be installed on all school buses. The federal government has weighed in, requiring three-point, lap-shoulder belts in all newly manufactured small, Type A school buses as of September 2011. But the remain a voluntary option on large school buses.

While California is the only state to have implemented a three-point law for all school buses, these lap/shoulder belts appear to be gaining ground.two-point lap belts remain a possibility for large buses. Four states still have laws on the books requiring new buses be purchased with lap belts, but many school districts nationwide can elect to pass their own policies and regulations.

Listed in this section are some of the most complete compendium of articles and resources dealing with the controversy of equipping school buses with seat belts versus relying on the compartmentalization, or protection, of children between cushioned, high-back seats during a crash.